Big Week Ahead for Rome 2020; Madrid Olympic Bid Readies Logo

(ATR) Rome 2020 tell Around the Rings that the bid team will make several key announcements at a press conference scheduled for next Wednesday.

Mario Pescante, president of Rome 2020, is set to unveil the results of national, regional and local public opinion polls about the Olympic bid at the Jan. 12 briefing. The costs of delivering a 2020 Games amid Italy's economic turmoil is a major issue for the bid.

Pescante, also an IOC vice president, is expected to be joined at the event by Italian Olympic Committee president Gianni Petrucci and Rome 2020 bid CEO Ernesto Albanese.

Pescante is also due to report on his meetings Wednesday morning with Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, representatives of the Italian Senate and the lower house of Italy's parliament.

Also Wednesday, five economists commissioned to deliver a study on the feasibility of an Olympics for Rome will present their report.

Logo Launch Close for Madrid

Madrid 2020's new international media chief Sandra Serrano tells ATR that the Spanish bid's logo and website will be unveiled in a few weeks

Bid president and Spanish NOC leader Alejandro Blanco and the city's new mayor, Ana Botella, will announce the winner of the three finalist logos that were shortlisted following a national competition. Victor Sanchez, CEO of Madrid 2020, will be among other key bid figures at the press conference.

Serrano said Madrid 2020 started work in new offices on Jan. 2. The offices are located in the Palacio de Cañete, in the middle of the city's historic district, meters away from the Puerta del Sol.

Madrid 2020 is expanding its communications team; it will be five-strong by next week.

Joining Serrano are Alfonso Rodríguez de Sadia, the marketing and communications director. Manuel Cano is responsible for local media. Two more staff will be added to the comms team next week.

Baku Chief Heads to Innsbruck YOG

Baku 2020 confirms to ATR that its CEO Konul Nurullayeva will be heading to the Innsbruck 2012 Youth Olympics next week.

The Azerbaijan delegation also includes Chingiz Huseynzade, vice president of the country's NOC.

The other five bids vying for 2020 will next week name the members of their delegations heading to the inaugural winter YOG.

Conservation Groups Question Denver 2022

Denver’s bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics could have a problem with environmental groups before even getting off the ground.

The Colorado Independent reports that conservation groups are concerned over their lack of representation in a committee set up to consider a bid.

"Given that environmental concerns in part derailed the Olympics in 1976, you’d think a prominent environmentalist would have been a key appointment on this committee," environmental activist Gary Wockner was quoted by the paper.

"Environmental issues such as air quality, traffic congestion, climate change, forest health, population growth, and water need to be considered in this Olympic bid."

Colorado governor John Hickenlooper and Denver mayor Michael Hancock set up the Denver Exploratory Committee last month, but the governor recently emphasized that the bid decision needs careful consideration.

According to an Associated Press report, Hickenlooper said Tuesday the decision to go after the Olympics is not a "black and white" issue and that Denver should look into the "pros and cons" of hosting.

Reported by Mark Bisson and Ann Cantrell

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